The Connecting Cleveland 2020 Citywide Plan proposes a wide range of goals and policies designed to provide greater opportunity and equity for all Clevelanders, particularly those who remain near the socioeconomic bottom of the community.  These goals and policies (taken from other chapters of the plan) include the following.

Decent and Affordable Housing. Give highest priority among the City’s housing initiatives to the provision of decent and affordable housing for all Clevelanders.

Housing Choice. Provide a diversity of housing types in neighborhoods throughout the City, maximizing choices for residents of all economic and social circumstances.

Rehabilitation. Give priority to housing rehabilitation as the most effective means of making affordable housing available to the greatest number of residents.

Homelessness. Address homelessness through a multi-faceted strategy that includes emergency shelters, permanent supportive housing, medical and social services, and job training.

Senior Housing.  Develop housing for senior citizens in proximity to shopping, medical facilities, social services, and public transportation.

Retail (Goal).Provide Cleveland residents with a broad range of high quality, conveniently located retail shopping opportunities.

Tapping the Market. Improve the quantity and quality of retailing in Cleveland neighborhoods by tapping into the hidden market that is often overlooked by national retailers, particularly in neighborhoods with large numbers of minorities and immigrants.

Creating Wealth.  Maximize opportunities for Cleveland residents to own and operate retail businesses in the City.

Economic Development (Goal).  Increase economic prosperity through job creation and improved access to jobs and business ownership by all segments of the Cleveland community.

Education. Strengthen public education in Cleveland as the foundation for economic development and personal prosperity.

Job Training. Improve access to job training opportunities that enable Cleveland residents to more fully participate in growing sectors of the economy.

Inclusiveness.  Ensure that minorities and City residents are fully represented in all employment sectors.

Recreation (Goal).  Provide high-quality recreation opportunities and facilities that meet the needs of Clevelanders of all ages, ability levels, incomes and interests.

Serving Neighborhoods.  Ensure that a wide range of recreation facilities are equitably distributed throughout the City, with playgrounds located within approximately ¼-mile (a 5-minute walk) of all residents.

Diverse Programming.  Offer a diversity of recreation programs to serve the recreation needs and interests of Clevelanders of all ages, incomes, lifestyles and ability levels.

Community Gardens.  Reserve land for both temporary and permanent use as community gardens in every neighborhood throughout the City.

Community Services (Goal).  Connect communities and their institutions in a manner that nurtures the physical, mental and spiritual life of all residents.

Schools as Community Resources.Utilize schools as centers for community education, open in the evenings and weekends for use by students as well as other neighborhood residents, as financial resources permit.

Equitable Funding for Schools.  Advocate for a statewide system of school funding that responds to the needs of students rather than to the wealth of communities.

Coordinated Neighborhood Services. Facilitate cooperation between local service providers and community organizations to work at the neighborhood level to address the comprehensive needs of residents for education, training, health care, and social services.

Community Libraries.  Support full-service libraries as centers for lifelong learning and intergenerational learning in each of Cleveland’s neighborhoods.

Community Health Care. Ensure that medical offices are located so as to supplement full-scale hospitals in serving residents of all Cleveland neighborhoods and that critical health care education is provided to students in elementary and secondary schools.

Transportation and Infrastructure (Goal).  Provide a variety of transportation options that serve residents of all income levels and that promote economic development while protecting the quality of life in neighborhoods.

Mass Transit.Support improved bus and rapid transit service, through public funding and employer incentives, to serve individuals who require or prefer mass transit and to reduce the pollution and roadway congestion caused by use of personal automobiles.

Neighborhood Bus Service. Continue and expand RTA’s “Community Circulator” program, providing convenient bus service to residents using mass transit to reach such neighborhood destinations as shopping, recreation and medical services.

Job Access.  Provide transit service between central city neighborhoods and employment concentrations in the city and in outlying areas.

Arts and Culture (Goal).Enrich the lives of Clevelanders and strengthen economic vitality by establishing Cleveland as a world-class center for the arts.

Accessibility.  Ensure that the arts are accessible and affordable to residents of all neighborhoods, income levels and ages, including arts programming in the public schools and expanded publicity and outreach.

Cultural Diversity. Ensure that the arts in Cleveland fully reflect and represent the cultural and demographic diversity of the Cleveland community.

Sustainability (Goal).  Ensure the long-term environmental, economic and social viability of Cleveland and its region.

Sustainable Neighborhoods.  Develop “full life-cycle neighborhoods” that provide housing and services for residents of all ages and incomes, with a healthful living environment and convenient access to jobs, shopping and recreation.

Sustainable Economy.Ensure that economic development, job training and education in the Cleveland region keep pace with national trends and emerging opportunities in order to provide jobs for current and future residents.

Back to Top